The Men! The Men! – American Idol 4 – 2/28/05

It’s men’s night and week two of the semi finals. I just adore men’s night. It’s a guaranteed hour’s worth of great music!

Up first is Mario :love: who attempts to dispel rumors of his baldness. Is he bald? With a voice like his, who cares? He sings “I Love Music”. He is flawless in my eyes. He has confidence and style and doesn’t miss a note. Randy seemed to like it but said he wants more from his voice. Paula agrees and adds that he is consistent and made a good song choice. Simon says Mario looks like he’s been doing this for years and doesn’t need advice from any of them.

Pinch me! Is Simon being nice?

Anwar, the music teacher is next and sings “What’s Going On”. I think he starts off weak and I’m not impressed with the performance, although nothing was wrong with it. The judges were more pleased than I. Randy says he has excellent control. Paula says he is consistent and the best vocalist of the competition. Simon said he sounded fantastic.

Note: Second nice comment from Simon.

Joseph Murena sang “Let’s Stay Together”. It is, by far, the best I’ve ever heard him. Randy said he was expecting more but was good. Paula said he was much better than last week. Simon said he sounded okay.

David Brown was up next and sang “All in Love is Fair”. For a moment or two I thought I was at a family wedding with Cousin Olaf singing. Someone get me a pillow for my sleepy head! Randy said it was pitchy in spots. Paula said it was “better” but believes the best is yet to come out of him (how diplomatic!). Simon told David he has “left his sparkle behind” and needs to sort himself out.

Constantine gets the audience up on to their feet as he belts out “Hard to Handle”. He was totally rockin’ – and pitchin’! But do we care that he missed a few (or more) notes? Of course not because he has those dreamy-come-hither eyes. Randy said it was pitchy at time but good. Simon said you could find the same caliber performance from any bar band. Ok, Simon may be right but let’s keep Constantine for a bit longer, okay?

Scott Savol sings “Never Too Much” for us and, as usual, sounds terrific. I think Scott has softened his appearance a bit with a pair of glasses and pink shirt. He seems less “thuggish” and I’m certain this will help in the competition. All three judges agree, he did a great job.

Note: Another nice comment from Simon.

Travis comes out shaky and nervous as he sings “All Night Long”. I wasn’t impressed with the singing but he does work the stage well. Randy said it was 100%improvement. Simon says he is not the best singer but is a born performer.

Nikko has never been one of my favorites. Until tonight. He sang a very seductive and moving version of “Lets Get It On”. This was a fantastic performance from a guy that I’ve thought all along was nothing more than mediocre. Randy said he “sang the song”. Paula is too flustered to speak (I feel your pain, Paula!). Simon says it’s a 1,000% improvement.

Note: Yep – another nice comment from Simon. And that was not a typo – he said 1,000%.

Anthony Federov is another one that has mellowed his looks. He is far less dorkified this week. He even borders on looking – hot! He sings “I Want to Know What Love Is”. It was beautiful. Randy said he “brought it home”. Paula agrees and Simon says “fantastic job”.

Note: I’ve lost count now.

Wrapping up the show is Bo who rocks us with “Whipping Post”. It’s clear that he has a stronger voice than Constantine and tonight we see more of the Constantine-style flirty looks which totally rounds out his performance. He is comfortable, confident and knows how to work the crowd. Randy loved the song, loved the clothes and said he was “da bomb”. Paula says he is the real deal and is proud. Simon said it was an extraordinary performance.

Final Note: I don’t think I’ve ever heard so many positive things out of Simon in one night. Obviously, there’s a reason for it. These men were excellent performers last week and this week they have really shown improvement. I can hardly wait until next week!